Paul Gurgol To Be Honored At Cain Park Performance Tuesday

Cleveland theater director Paul Gurgol was working on the production of when he died in March.

To honor Gurgol, John Paul Boukis, who plays Rod in Avenue Q, and music director David Robison created a tribute, "Night of a Thousand Stars," which is set for 7 p.m. Tuesday, June 26 at Alma Theater.

Artists who worked with Gurgol throughout his life will perform songs from the many theater productions he was involved in such as Evita, Grand Hotel and Carousel, and share their memories of him.

The event is free, and organizers will collect donations in Gurgol's name for St. Jude's Hospital.

The Cleveland Heights resident, who was 55, died of cancer, The Plain Dealer reported in March.

Gurgol directed Sweeney Todd in 2010 at Alma Theater in Cain Park and ran the now closed Kalliope Stage on Lee Road.

"He was one of those Cleveland Heights residents that makes us 'home to the arts,'" said acting city manager Susanna Niermann O'Neil in .

O'Neil said Gurgol was enthusiastic about Avenue Q and all the projects he worked on.

"He wanted to share his great love of musical theater with every audience he could find, and because of that, he was exceptional."